W.H. won't give up on Berwick

The White House is refusing to give up on the nomination of Don Berwick as head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, in spite of a united front by GOP senators that could deny him a confirmation vote.

42 Republicans signed a letter to President Barack Obama on Thursday asking him to withdraw Berwick’s name and nominate someone who can win bipartisan support.

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“The White House’s handling of this nomination — failing to respond to repeated requests for information and circumventing the Senate through a recess appointment — has made Dr. Berwick’s confirmation next to impossible,” Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) said. “In the spirit of cooperation, the president should withdraw his nomination and choose a different candidate who has the support and confidence of the American people.”

But the White House said the nomination will not be withdrawn.

“The president nominated Don Berwick because he’s far and away the best person for the job, and he’s already doing stellar work at CMS: saving taxpayer dollars by cracking down on fraud, and implementing delivery system reforms that will save billions in excess costs and save millions of lives,” White House spokesman Reid Cherlin said.

Berwick received a recess appointment in July after senators failed to act on his nomination in the last Congress amid fierce Republican opposition. Obama resubmitted the nomination in January, but there’s no sign senators are prepared to act on it. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) told POLITICO last month he would not commit to a confirmation hearing, and other Democrats have acknowledged that the nomination is in trouble.

"I think it would be very tough in this environment. … If we can get some bipartisan products moving forward, then the answer is yes. If you can’t get some bipartisan products moving forward, it’s going to be difficult,” Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin told POLITICO.

When asked about the president’s refusal to give up on the nomination, Baucus said with a shrug: "That's his choice. It's his nominee."

Berwick, a pediatrician, had angered Republicans with previous statements in support of the British health system and the rationing of care, which Berwick says were taken out of context. More recently, GOP senators have been critical of his leadership at CMS, and many are still angry over the recess appointment.

Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) has also raised questions about Berwick’s work as head of the privately-funded Institute for Healthcare Improvement, which had financial relationships with several health care companies, including drug makers. In a statement, Grassley slammed the administration for refusing to release documents detailing how the institute was funded.

“When I ask the administration about the request, I’m now told Dr. Berwick no longer works for the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, so he’s no longer in a position to provide the information. That strikes me as a disingenuous position by the administration, and it’s in direct contradiction to the commitment made by Dr. Berwick. In fact, the administration’s decision to recess-appoint Dr. Berwick and then claim he can no longer provide information sets an unacceptable precedent,” Grassley said.

If they stay united, Republicans can easily block his confirmation with a filibuster. If he is not confirmed, he will have to leave the post at the end of the year.

David Nather contributed to this story.

CORRECTION : An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported that all Republican senators signed the letter. In fact, 42 of the 47 did.

CORRECTION: Corrected by: Burgess Everett @ 03/03/2011 04:33 PM
CORRECTION : An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported that all Republican senators signed the letter. In fact, 42 of the 47 did.